Andreas Gumbert DG Agriculture and Rural Development, Unit H4
European Commission
Biogas: EU legal framework and support possibilities under the
Common Agricultural Policy
Content
• EU legal framework for renewable energy
• Support for biogas under the CAP 2014-2020
EU Renewable Energy Directive • 20% renewable energy by 2020 (EU average)
• Choice of type of RE and support mechanism lies with MS
• Sustainability requirements for liquid biofuels and bioliquids
0% 5%
10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%
National 2020 RE targets
EU Common Agricultural Policy 2014-2020
Pillar I: Direct support Market measures 277.85 billion EUR (2014-20)
• No direct support for biomass or bioenergy production
• Cross-compliance
• Greening obligations
Pillar II: Rural Development 84.94 billion EUR (2014-20)
• RD Policy remains the key policy for renewable energy under the CAP
• National/regional RD plans
Common Agricultural Policy
What is new?
Pillar I
The new greening architecture of the CAP
6
Agricultural area (eligible for direct payments)
Cross compliance
Greening
Rural development
Cu
mu
lati
ve
envi
ron
men
tal
ben
efit
s
Regulatory (Statutory
Management Requirements and Good Agricultural
Environmental Conditions)
Mandatory with financial
support (decoupled “green”
payment per hectare)
Voluntary with compensation
for cost incurred and income forgone
Implementation mechanism
Agricultural
Research
European
Innovation
Partnership Farm
Advisory
System
The green direct payment
7
• 30% of direct payment envelope
• Conditions: Maintaining permanent grassland, crop diversification and ecological focus areas (EFA)
• EFA (5% of arable surface):
• May include: field margins, buffer strips, fallow land, landscape features, afforested area, terraces, areas with catch crops, green cover and nitrogen fixing crops, short rotation coppices, agro-forestry, strips of land along forest edges – conversion/weighting factors
• Member States to choose permitted uses from this list • Additional incentive to grow biogas feedstocks is rather small
What is new?
Pillar II
Focus areas
6. Social inclusion, poverty reduction
and economic development in rural areas
2. Farm viability, competitiveness, innovative farm
technologies, sustainable forest
management
3. Food chain organisation, incl.
processing/marketing, animal welfare and risk management
4. Restoring, preserving and
enhancing ecosystems
5. Resource efficiency and shift towards a
low carbon and climate resilient
economy
1. Knowledge transfer and Innovation
Rural development priorities
Inn
ovation, C
limate C
han
ge and
Environ
men
t
Cross-cutting objectives
(a) innovation, cooperation, and the development of the knowledge base; (b) links between agriculture, food production and forestry and research and innovation; (c) lifelong learning and vocational training.
(a) economic performance of all farms and farm restructuring and modernisation, notably to increase market participation/orientation and diversification; (b) facilitating entry of adequately skilled farmers and generational renewal.
(a) integration of primary producers into the agri-food chain: quality schemes, adding value, promotion in local markets and short supply circuits, producer groups/ organisations; (b) farm risk prevention and management.
(a) biodiversity, including in Natura 2000 areas, areas facing natural or other specific constraints and high nature value farming, and the state of European landscapes; (b) water management, including fertiliser and pesticide management; (c) prevention of soil erosion and soil management.
(a) efficiency in water use (b) efficiency in energy use (c) renewable sources of energy, by products, wastes and non-food raw material for the bio-economy (d) reduction of greenhouse gas and ammonia emissions (e) carbon conservation and sequestration
(a) diversification, creation and development of small enterprises and job creation (b) local development in rural areas (c) information and communication technologies (ICT) in rural areas
Strategic programming
9
30% minimal spending
What type of support is possible under Rural Development?
Investments in agricultural holdings • Examples: • Agricultural holdings: Production of bio-energy for on-farm use • Processing/marketing/development: Processing of agricultural biomass for RE (by actors
other than agricultural holdings) • Infrastructure: Installations/infrastructure for distribution of RE using biomass and
other RE sources (solar, wind, geothermal)
• Conditions (Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 639/2014):
• Maximum proportions of cereals and other starch rich crops, sugars and oil crops used for bioenergy production, including biofuels
• Minimum utilization of heat in installations for electricity production from biomass (level to be determined by the MS)
• Minimum energy efficiency standards for investments into energy infrastructure • Sustainability criteria, including Article 17(2) to (6) of Directive 2009/28/EC
11
General State Aid rules apply for marketing of RE ouside the farm
Farm and business development
• Examples: • Business start-up for RE producers and inter-linked activities • Creation & development of non-agricultural activities: RE production
• Different RE activities (e.g. biomass, wind, solar, geothermal) • RE production as part of non-agricultural diversification activities, if the
production exceeds the annual energy consumption on the holding
12
Basic services and village renewal in rural areas
• Examples: • Distribution networks for heat/electric power/gas from biomass or other renewable
sources • Facilities to produce and use RE in rural municipalities (e.g. district heating networks to
use process heat of bio-energy plants)
• Support of RE infrastructure possible without any size limitation (i.e. large-scale projects are covered)
13
Co-operation and
Setting up of producer groups and organisations
• Examples cooperation: • Pilot and demonstration projects for RE • Development of new products, practices, processes and technologies for RE
• Horizontal and vertical co-operation among supply chain actors in the sustainable provision of biomass for use in food and energy production and industrial processes.
• Examples producer groups: • Jointly placing on the market of biomass; joint supply to bulk buyers
Conclusions
• Biogas important for EU renewable energy objectives
• EU RE policy main driver • CAP provides important support options under
Rural Development Policy • Assessment of RDPs ongoing
Thank you
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